Kentwood Teacher Remembered: ‘I Pretty Much Owe Ms. Brush My Life’

KENTWOOD, Mich. – The East Kentwood School community is mourning after losing a beloved English teacher over the weekend.

On Sunday, Bonnie Brush, 43, was killed after her vehicle rolled over along US-23 in Washtenaw County.

Within minutes, word of her death traveled back to West Michigan. Several people took to social media expressing their grief.

“Deeply saddened to hear the sudden passing of one of EK’s most beloved teachers, Bonnie Brush,” one person on Twitter wrote. “She really meant a lot to us all.”

Arreile Long, a student at the school, said she took three classes with Brush.

“I won’t be able to go to her classroom next year and just eat my lunch in her classroom and talk to her like I needed to,” Long said. “It’s unbelievable.”

Back in December, Long’s two sisters were the victims of a high-profile double murder-suicide in Grand Rapids. She said that during her time of grief, she would stop by Brush’s classroom, angry at the world, looking for someone who would listen.